Merry Christmas

Ed's family was able to come celebrate Christmas with us this year.  We all went to the Christmas Eve service.  It was the second time Abbey and Caroline have gone to church.  The doctor gave us the okay for them to go now that they are past eight weeks old.

The girls were festive for their first Christmas.  It was good that we got the picture when we did.  Not too long later, Abbey threw up all over it.  Fun stuff!

We tried something new this year.  Instead of opening everything on Christmas morning, we only opened a few things. We are going to spread out the rest over the twelve days of Christmas.  We are hoping that this will decrease the materialistic focus of Christmas Day and help the kids to enjoy each gift more.  This way the gifts won't all be in a pile while the favorite toy gets all of the attention.  We also hope it will help them to remember who has given them each gift.  We will see how it goes.  It is just an experiment. 

Hope you had a great Christmas.  Abbey says, "HO HO HO!"

Life Lesson

Parenting provides lots of lessons about life.  These two girls are giving me lots of insight into my sin, but we won't go there right now.  :o)  The other night I learned a different sort of lesson from them.

It was probably around 11 pm, and I was laying in bed trying to go to sleep.  The girls were out in the den with Ed.  They were doing their crying duet--loudly. Despite the noise, I was able to lay down, relax and head off to sleep.  

It struck me that this was very different from other times when they are crying. Why was I able to relax instead of getting worked up?  I realized it was because Ed was in charge.  I didn't have to try to settle them.  My job was to sleep so that I could get up later in the night for my turn.  They were being cared for by their capable, loving father.    

Then the parallel struck me.  Isn't this what I am to do in life? The Lord has given me some things to do, and I am to leave the rest to Him trusting that He has it under control.  Often, I try to take up what isn't mine.  Instead of worrying and fretting, I am to relax and rest in Him.  

It makes me think of two verses.  The first is 1 Peter 5:7 which says, "Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you."  The second is from Psalm 3, which is written by David when he is fleeing from Absolom.   In verse 5 he says, "I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the Lord sustains me."  Someone once commented that David's ability to sleep in the midst of fleeing for his life was a testimony to his faith and trust in God's providential care.  

As my kids grow, I hope I can take this lesson to heart and rest, trusting the Father that loves and cares for me and the ones I love.  

Molly's Thoughts and My New Thigh Master

This morning I was sitting on the couch with my legs folded "criss-cross applesauce" style.  Caroline was in the hole created by my legs waiting her turn to eat and Abbey was propped on one leg and craddled in one arm while I gave her a bottle.  Molly woke up and joined us.  She sat there talking to Caroline and helping her wait patiently for her turn.  After a few minutes, Molly looks at me and says, "Having babies is fun."  Isn't that great?!  I am so glad for this attitude.  

While sitting there, Caroline began to get tired of waiting.  So, I started jostling my leg, as her head was propped on it.  This seemed to soothe her a bit.  I kept it up intermittently.  It wasn't too long before I realized I was going to be hurting a bit the rest of the day.  My eight pound, four ounce baby is a great thigh master.  (And just so you know, her sister is the light version, weighing in at seven pounds and  ten ounces, as of her eight week appointment last week.)  Sorry, you won't be able to find these in stores this Christmas.

Not Firing On All Cylinders

So far since having the twins I have:

1.  Gone the wrong way down a one way street because I didn't notice there was a median

2.  Started to shower with my glasses on

3.  Wondered why the phone wasn't hanging up, only to find that I was pushing the power button on the pump rather than the phone

4.  Almost hung up the phone on my friend, instead of turning off the pump

5.  Searched around the house for five minutes looking for my hands-free phone headset, only to realize it was on my head already

Gotta get more sleep.  :o)

Respite

Thanks to Ed, I got a real treat yesterday.  I got to take Molly to school alone.  That means we could just walk out to the van, hop in and go.  She could talk all that she wanted without any interruptions--no crying sisters, no interrupting big brother.  

Then I got to leave two and a half hours early for my eye appointment, armed with $20 for a yummy lunch.  Since I was already going "in to town" for my appointment, I decided to go to the new Panera and enjoy some of the food that I had been missing since leaving St. Louis.   Then I went to Barnes and Noble, got some yummy coffee, read a book and wandered around.  Finally, I went to the mall for my appointment.  As I was walking in and seeing the people and the holiday decorations, I couldn't help but smile.  It was great to be free for a few hours. 

At the outset, Ed said he wanted me to have a respite.  It was a wonderful break!  I came home ready to feed the hungry and comfort the fussy, all thanks to Ed.  

Surreal

Abbey and Caroline turned six weeks on Friday!   

I went to the doctor for my six week check-up last Thursday.  As I was checking out and making an appointment for December 2009, I couldn't believe it.  No more weekly visits.  Did I really just go through nine--rather, eight--months of pregnancy with twins?  Did I birth them and survive the NICU experience?  Could they really be six weeks already?  

It is true, but I can't believe it.  

(On a side note, I may have to go back to the doctor in a month if my incision doesn't finish healing.  There is one little spot that won't knit together all the way.  She said give it a month.  If that doesn't work, then I'll have to go in for her to fix it.  That means "numbing me up, cutting a wedge, and resewing it."  Sounds like fun, huh?  Please pray that I can avoid this.  Thanks!)